It's been very hard for me to accept that Christmas is right around the corner. But the fact of the matter is, Santa will be sliding down chimneys around the world before we know it. On Sunday we took the opportunity to visit HersheyPark Christmas Candylane. We have HersheyPark season passes so it is very easy for us to decide on a last minute basis to head over and enjoy a few hours at the park since we are not faced with out of pocket ticket prices. It turned out to be a perfect evening to visit.
We headed down around 5pm, the park was open till 8 that night. When we arrived the parking lot was empty! There could not have been more then 150 cars in the parking lot. I've been to HersheyPark easily over 1000 times since I have been a season pass holder and can say this was the most empty I have ever seen this place. It was certainly not a ghost town but it was very pleasant! We got a front row parking spot and headed in. Javon's friend Myles tagged along for this visit. Javon is a "Reeses" height wise and Myles just made it to a "Kiss" but they would easily be able to ride almost every single open ride aside from maybe 2.
As soon as you reach the entrance you are greeted with festive lighting and Christmas music. Unfortunately, as I attempted to take my first photo of the night, I realized I did something to my camera settings and was not able to correct it for the rest of the evening, so this post will contain some crappy cell phone picutres but you guys will get the idea! We first headed on The Reese's extreme cup challenge, one of Javon's favorite ride's. This ride has a long line normally in the summer so we don't ride it often but this time we walked right on, and by walk right on I mean we entered, the cars were not moving, employees were sitting around bored because no one was there to ride it! Next the boys hit up the Ladybugs, The Mini Pirate Ship and we all took a ride on the Cocoa Cruiser before heading over to ride the train.
After a ride on the train, we headed toward the back of the park. The back area is closed during Christmas Candylane but tucked behind Fahrenheit is a large pavilion that hosts ice skating and Santa's Reindeer! We did not skate this visit but we did last year when it was a new attraction. Skate rentals are 2$, you may not bring your own. The rink is made of synthetic ice, so it is not slippery like real ice. On the other side of the pavilion you will find the stars! Santa's reindeer are on display while ZooAmerica employees are present to answer any questions you may have.
After visiting with the reindeer, we started our trek across the park to Santa Claus Lane so we could see the man of the season! We made pit-stops along the way to ride the swings, the wiggle scooters, the frog hopper and the planes. We finally made it to Santa, and realized he was moved this year! Last year and years before you could meet Santa in a restaurant in front of the Kissing Tower that is not used during Christmas CandyLane. This year Hershey has strategically moved Santa into the arcade building across the way. You will realize what I mean by "strategically" in just a moment.
So we headed into the arcade that is hosting Santa, I made sure I ushered Javon into the door that was marked for Santa. It was crucial that we avoided the arcade at all costs or else we would be stuck in there all night. We quickly walked the queue line for Santa and only had to wait for one family to meet with him before it was our turn. This Santa is a pretty good one, good beard, friendly and we are in Hershey so each kid get a mini Hersheys Bar after visiting! Now for the bad, as you leave you are directed toward a counter to purchase over-priced pictures, light up pictures frames and whatever else they feel like they can get the tourists to buy. We by-passed this and headed for the exit, but guess what? We rounded the corner and were deposited directly into the middle of the arcade! Not cool Hershey...not cool at all! I am on to you and I know how the money-hungry minds work over there. I watched multiple families attempting to coax children out of the area as they begged to play games. After about 15 minutes of pleading and begging, I was finally able to get Javon out of there. We will not be visiting Santa there on any more visits this year.
After our visit was over, we rode a few more rides, (Kissing Tower, Antique Cars, Granny Bugs, and Tilt-a-Whirl) before heading over to Chocolate World to end our evening. We enjoyed our time in the park and of course we will return again before Candylane closes.
If you go:
HersheyPark Christmas Candylane is open now-Dec 1st, Every weekend Fri-Sun. Christmas CandyLane will also be open Wednesday Nov. 26th, Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday, everyday Dec 12th - Dec 23rd, and everyday Dec 26th - Dec 31st.
Admission to HersheyPark Christmas Candylane is 12$ ages 3 and over. Other options are available such as 2 day tickets and a combo ticket for admission to HersheyPark Christmas Candylane and Dutch Winter Wonderland.
For more info:
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